Gladed Terrain

Terrain - #3 Variety & #4 Challenge SKI Magazine Reader Survey 2017

Smuggs Gladed Terrain

Smuggs offers some of the most extensive and diverse gladed terrain in the East!

There are 22 marked glades for every ability level, from the beginner Whitetail Woods at Morse Highlands to the East's only triple black diamond, The Black Hole. In addition to these marked glades, there are over 750 acres of all-access terrain to explore between trails. That's right, you can ski or ride anywhere within the ski area boundaries, as long as you exit an open trail, and return to an open trail.

Over the past several seasons, we've opened up loads of new gladed terrain. These areas include the expert level Shakedown, and the intermediate level Knight's Revenge, Norwegian Woods, The Shire and Bermuda, as well as expanded gladed areas on Madonna Mountain, such as the woods on the skier's left off of the Lower Drifter trail.

The Resort's total gladed area encompasses over 45 acres and 22 percent of the total skiable and patrolled area. Some of our gladed terrain includes trails on skier's right off the venerable Doc Dempsey's trail on Madonna, a challenging area on the upper mountain, and on skier's right off of Upper Liftline, just above mid-station and dropping you out onto Link.

For skiers and snowboarders who are not familiar with swooshing in between the trees, the Red Fox Glades are a good place to start. These glades are located on the Drifter trail just before the Madonna I chairlift crosses overhead. The Red Fox Glades are fairly wide open and the whole glade is very short and the pitch is gentle, so if you find yourself needing practice before you do more, you're back on a groomed trail in no time.

Three Mountain Glades, Norwegian Woods and Knight's Revenge are three other glades on Madonna rated intermediate that are located near the Madonna I lift between the mid-station and run out. Give them a try—they're awesome!

Smugglers' The Black Hole is the Northeast's only Triple Black Diamond! Located on Madonna Mountain at the Freefall woods, you'll find extreme terrain at its finest: steeps, cliffs and moguls threaded through the snowy woods. The top 600 feet of this 1600 foot trail are pitched at a 65 to 70 percent grade. Please do not attempt this terrain if you are not up to the challenge.

Expert's tip: Skiing a corridor

Many people get intimidated trying to ski in narrow spaces. Combining a sideslip with a pivot of the skis can be an essential tool in that situation. On groomed terrain with some pitch, imagine you are skiing down a narrow corridor (early morning groomer tracks are great for this), start to sideslip straight down the corridor in one direction; then unweight your feet, pivot your ski tips in the other direction, and continue sideslipping. Repeat this as many times as you can. Then try it the next time you are skiing in bumps or glades.- Oliver Blackman, PSIA Level 1 certified instructor

Smuggs Off Trail PolicyWooded areas beyond the marked ski resort area boundary as shown on the trail map are closed to skiing and snowboarding. Woods between open trails are not marked trails, are not patrolled and have no skier/snowboarder services. If you decide to ski or snowboard inside the ski resort area boundary, enter from and exit to an open trail. If you ski or snowboard in these wooded areas, you are solely responsible for yourself. You should be an expert skier or snowboarder, and you should stay in groups of three or more. If you ski or snowboard beyond the ski resort area boundary, Vermont Law provides that you are liable for all expenses for search and rescue services.Do not ski or snowboard on or across closed trails.

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